Ethical Practice in Disability Services: Views of Young People and Staff

ABSTRACT

In recent years there has been increased focus on supporting the safety and wellbeing of children and young people with disability. This paper reports on a study that asked children and young people with disability and adults who work with them about practices that support their wellbeing and safety, including barriers and enablers to ethical practice. We used the theory of practice architectures to unpack the practices. Findings point to a range of practices that both young people and adults regarded as important in creating the cultural conditions for young people to feel happy, safe and well, albeit placing different emphases on particular practices. Several tensions within and between these practices and the evolving requirements of disability and safeguarding policy environments were also apparent. While often not well articulated, the inherent tensions have implications when considering what children and young people need, particularly those with higher support needs. Findings suggest closer attention needs to be given to the intersection between individual and systemic factors in shaping ethical practice aimed at supporting the wellbeing and safety of children and young people with disability.

KEYWORDS:

• Disability
• children
• safety
• ethical practice
• relationships

Acknowledgements

Thank you to the young people and practitioners who provided their ideas and insights to the study, and to the members of our Young People’s Advisory Group for their continuing advice.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Funding details

This work was supported by an Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Grant (DP180100465).

Data availability statement

Further project data is available at https://www.scu.edu.au/centre-for-children-and-young-people/our-research/epic/

Notes

1 This paper uses the term ‘people with disability’, reflecting both person-first preferences of Australian self-advocates and the social model use of disability. Deaf and Autistic young people are referred to in identity-first terms, in keeping with their preferences.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sally Robinson

Sally Robinson is Professor in Disability and Community Inclusion at Flinders University, South Australia. Sally does research with children, young people and adults with disability about what helps them feel safe, well and happy at difficult times in their lives. Most of her work is co-produced with people with disability.

Anne Graham

Anne Graham is Professor of Childhood Studies and Director of the Centre for Children and Young People, Southern Cross University, Australia. Anne is known for her research around children and young people’s rights and wellbeing. She has published widely in areas related to social and emotional wellbeing, participation rights and practices, adapting to loss and grief, and ethical research.

Antonia Canosa

Antonia Canosa is a social anthropologist and Research Fellow on the ‘Ethical Practice Involving Children’ (EPIC) research project at the Centre for Children and Young People, Southern Cross University, Australia. Antonia’s work focuses on children’s rights, participation and wellbeing in schools and the community context. She also researches in the areas of identity, belonging, ethical research and youth cultures.

Tim Moore

Tim Moore is a child and youth researcher and Deputy Director at the Australian Centre for Child Protection at the University of South Australia. For 15 years, Tim and his colleagues have conducted participatory studies to better understand children’s needs and to inform the ways that they are supported, particularly in the areas of child protection, caring and youth justice.

Nicola Taylor

Nicola Taylor is Director of the Children’s Issues Centre in the Faculty of Law at the University of Otago, New Zealand. She also holds the Alexander McMillan Chair in Childhood Studies. She has qualifications in both law and social work, a PhD, and has been admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court. Nicola is a leading socio-legal researcher and has undertaken many studies with children, parents and professionals on family law and children’s rights issues

Tess Boyle

Tess Boyle is currently an Adjunct Associate Researcher in the Centre for Children and Young People at Southern Cross University, Australia and Director, Tess Boyle Consulting. Through these roles Tess continues to maintain her research and publication interests in early childhood education; educational transitions; ethical practices involving children; practice theories; praxis; middle leading; assessment, pedagogy and curriculum.